


strangers.

by tienye



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28815396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tienye/pseuds/tienye
Summary: The little eight year old Gallifreyan never was entirely good around others, something which his father always accosted him for. He was cordial to them, for sure, but he always felt strange around them. Like he wouldn’t fit in. But that sweet little boy with a blonde mop atop his head did something to make the Oakdown’s Time Tot’s hearts flutter. A friend. His first proper friend, he thought.
Relationships: The Doctor & The Master (Doctor Who), The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who)
Kudos: 2





	strangers.

_ Friends _ .

The little eight year old Gallifreyan never was entirely good around others, something which his father always accosted him for. He was cordial to them, for sure, but he always felt strange around them. Like he wouldn’t fit in. From now on he supposed he’d have to fit in, given it was now time for him to enter the Academy. But one boy always stuck out to him. One far too excitable, far too chaotic, in his little mind. But that sweet little boy with a blonde mop atop his head did something to make the Oakdown’s Time Tot’s hearts flutter. A friend. His first proper friend, he thought. 

A friend, who he always ran with on his fathers estates when they should be in lessons, who he always dreamed of travelling the universe with, who he promised to explore all the stars in the universe with. Nothing could stop the pair. This was the first time he ever truly felt love for someone, and from someone else, and he never wanted it to end. 

A friend, who he saved from a bully trying to kill them. Or who saved him from a bully trying to kill them. He couldn’t really remember. One minute his head was underwater, the next he was staring down at the bully’s body, a rock in hand. The details didn’t matter. He and his friend were safe. 

A friend who’d named him ‘Koschei’. A friend who he’d named ‘Theta Sigma’, or ‘Thete’ if he really wanted something. 

Theta, who was the person he felt the closest to in a long, long time. 

_ Best friends. _

_ Lovers? _

Koschei had always been minutely aware of his friend’s feelings towards him. No matter how much he wanted to say he felt the same way, there were no real words to truly express that desire, no thoughts either. There was always the doubt as to whether the Houses would allow it, which Theta would always be optimistic about, but Koschei could guess his house would not be so happy for it. 

Still, that didn’t stop them. They didn’t entirely want to define whatever it was they had, they just let themselves go with the flow. Was easier for them this way. None of the other Deca seemed to mind or care. Apart from Vansell, but Vansell was just allowed to tag on for the ride, he must’ve been aware by now the others thought him detestable. Or at the very least unlikable. Such a stickler for the rules. 

The pair always brought one another such peace. Joy. Even if Theta did irritate him on occasion, Koschei doubted he could ever stop loving his friend. Even through all his horrific jokes, his silly pranks, the constant want to take a razor to Koschei’s little goatee, that Koschei now kept primarily out of spite. He was happy with Theta. He was happy with the entirety of the Deca, but something about Theta just made sparks fly in his hearts, a feeling he truly ever doubted someone else could conjure up from him. 

They still bickered, of course. Bickering was normal. It was something they’d always done, and probably would do throughout all of time. But Koschei couldn’t help but feel like Theta was more distant after their arguments. Almost as if he was reconsidering everything about all this. And Koschei hated it. He couldn’t do anything bar try and stop their petty little arguments but sometimes he couldn’t help it. And each time he hated himself even more for it. 

Though there were times he was glad for the distancing. Times when he mentioned the drums pounding in his head making it all worse for him, and Theta would just scoff at him. As if he were attempting to absolve all blame of himself, when in truth, he couldn’t help it. Or he’d be outrightly told the noises didn’t exist, that he was making them, which only served to infuriate him more. The irritation only grew and grew each time, until he too wanted to distance himself from Theta. 

Until the sparks were lost between them.

_ Just friends. _

_ Or just acquaintances now? _

The pair were amicable to one another. It was obvious they weren’t as close as they once were, but they still got by. Worked closely with one another, and that was it. Back to their respective apartments, perhaps occasionally meeting to catch up. Reminisce about old times and get a little too drunk in Low Town, then never mention their nights afterwards. 

Koschei seemed like he was managing but he couldn’t handle it. He missed his friend dearly, but knew the pair of them were too stubborn to even dare think of begging to rekindle it all. Their last bitter argument still on the forefront of both of their minds, the one that led them to realise the other was fundamentally different. 

Theta seemed to be getting more distant by the day, and Koschei would’ve been lying if he said he wasn’t petrified of being abandoned. It was almost as though he could sense what it was his friend was planning, wanting to put a stop to it. The only trouble was, he didn’t know how. The only thing he could think of was being able to track him, that being better than anything else when he felt like he was running out of time.

And then the time came. 

It felt like he was the last to know, with everyone else waiting for someone to be the one to deliver him the news. The news he found out for himself. That Theta had disappeared. Run away. No trace. 

Abandoned him.

Ushas had been the first one to offer any real comfort to him. Convinced him to stop moping. Warned him against shutting out Theta when she heard that Theta was trying to reach him. Suggested they go searching. Yes, yes, they could go searching. Surely Theta wouldn’t want to evade them, they could find him. 

But it proved useless. 

Their old friend did not wish to be found. Koschei was growing more restless by the day, not entirely minding being left alone by Ushas, as she wished to return to Gallifrey. He’d met Ailla not long afterwards anyway, a sweet human from the 28th century. She would keep him company. She seemed to be entirely invested in his underlying mission. Entirely invested in him. In truth he never thought there’d have been anyone else who could be so invested in nearly his every word, and couldn’t help himself in growing closer to her. 

His hearts didn’t flutter as much as they did with Theta - the Doctor now - but they fluttered all the same for her. 

The pair of them ended up on Darkheart, a planet that almost seemed to be calling to him. Why, he did not initially know. After landing and finding out an old friend was also there, he couldn’t help but believe that was the reason he’d been brought here; to finally reunite with the Doctor. The disappointment he felt over his friend being apprehensive about being found once more, but understood. He couldn’t convince him that he was there simply to reunite, not to return him to Gallifrey, as he’d never admit he’d been searching for the Doctor for...he’d lost count now. For so long the Doctor had already regenerated once. But that wasn’t important. They’d found each other. 

Ailla seemed to be happy at the appearance of the Doctor. Why, Koschei couldn’t quite place it, but he was glad for it. Glad to have the pair of them. 

Until Ailla was shot. 

Everything seemed to crumble from there on. 

At first he tried to harness the power of the Darkheart, desperately wishing to revert back time to prevent her being shot. Prevent her dying. But he couldn’t, that frustrating him beyond belief. The Doctor had to stop him, and Koschei had to stop himself from lashing out at the other Time Lord. Until he’d been pointed in the direction of Ailla - a newly regenerated Ailla - stumbling from one of the far rooms he’d placed her in on his TARDIS. He was relieved to begin with, that she couldn’t die. 

Then he realised why she was with him. She was from the Celestial Intervention Agency. Had to keep tabs on him. Had to bring the Doctor and his TARDIS back to Gallifrey. And he couldn’t control himself anymore. 

“Koschei! Stop this! Leave Ailla be!” 

The Doctor stopped in his tracks when his old friend turned to look at him. The glint in his eyes had changed. Gone was the wonder he always saw when Koschei looked at him, it had been replaced by something far more sinister. It had morphed into something more murderous. 

“Koschei, I mean it! Or else I will be forced to take extreme measures!”

But Koschei wouldn’t stop, not even when the Doctor frantically plugged in a seemingly random destination on the TARDIS controls, not even when he disappeared with Ailla. Not even when he opened the doors and found himself hurtling towards a black hole. He would never stop. 

The Doctor might’ve thought he’d killed Koschei, but the Master had just been born. And vengeance would fuel the Master’s being.

_ No, mortal enemies.  _


End file.
